Devil's in the Details Revision
by Lucia Geuse
Summary: Movieverse. A total revision of my first draft Devil's in the Details. Beetlejuice and Lydia are married, now five years after Beetlejuice is released and seeks his bride only to find some surprises in store for him. Rated T, but will change to M.
1. You may kiss the bride

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Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to Beetlejuice**

Summer's here and I graduated from my university. That means I actually have some time to revise and finish my work. I have been thinking about Devil's in the Details a lot over the past few months and decided that I really wanted to revise it. I will be keeping the older version of it, so those of you who like the old version can read that, but this is something that I have wanted to do for a while. The story line will be pretty much the same. What I am really doing is adding and expanding. I wrote the first version in about nine days, this I want to take some time and really delve into characters.

I hope you enjoy the first chapter of my revision and as always, I love to hear what you have to say.

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"I now pronounce you man and wife," the preacher rang out in his slithered tone. Lydia looked down at him as her eyes pleaded. This couldn't be happening, she thought. No, there is no way that this actually occurred. She turned to look at her groom and felt fear rising up inside of her. Beetlejuice, the ghost that promised to help save Barbara and Adam; in turn she promised to be his bride. She'd give anything to take it all back as she looked at him. He turned and smiled at her, but she shrank back from him, his smile molded as was the rest of him and she was afraid.

As Beetlejuice leaned in to kiss his bride they heard a noise from the ceiling and both bride and groom turned to look and see what it was. Lydia stared in horror as one of the massive sandworms came crashing into the room, Barbara barely visible upon its back.

Beetlejuice turned his hands up in horror as the monster opened its wide jaws and its second head came sliding out and swallowed him whole, leaving only the echoes of his screams left in the room.

"Oh Lydia, I'm so sorry I wasn't sooner," Barbara said as she walked over to the stoic bride. Lydia stared down into the hole that the sandworm hand left and let the blood red roses that she was holding slip from her fingers and fall down into the distant planet. Lydia felt the cool tips of Barbara's fingers stroke her face to comfort her, but she was far from herself.

"This can't be legal can it? I mean she's only a child and he's dead for God's sakes," Delia said when she finally clawed her way away from her sculpture. She turned to look at her husband Charles who was still white with fear and rolled her eyes.

"We'll pretend that it didn't happen," Delia said and smiled as she reached for her stepdaughter to pull her away from the motherly ghost.

"There is no way that this actually happened," Lydia said her voice solemn and faint.

"I'm afraid it did Kid," a raspy voice called causing everyone to turn and look across the room. The ghost took a drag on her cigarette and let it slip through the slit in the middle of her neck before she spoke again.

"He was eaten by a sandworm," Barbara said, "surely that means that she can't be married to him."

"Sure he was eaten," Juno said and nodded her head slightly, "too bad he was already dead to begin with or that might have meant something. Unfortunately for you," she said and pointed her finger at Lydia, "that doesn't mean a thing."

"So there's nothing I can do?" Lydia squeaked as she blinked her large deep blue eyes up at Juno.

Juno looked down at the girl and felt sorry for her. She was too young to have this happen to her, but rules were rules and that was one thing that Juno was great at. "Look, I'll keep him in the waiting room for as long as I can, but I will have to see him eventually and when I do," she took another drag on her cigarette and closed her eyes, "I will have to sign off on it."

"But why? Can't you figure out some sort of loophole?" Delia asked narrowing her eyes at the old ghost.

Juno turned and stared at the brutish woman with a sharp eye. "She entered into the contract with full consent and as much as I want to keep this from going through I can't. She had the choice and made it. Beetlejuice didn't force her in any way to agree to marry him, but she agreed to it."

Lydia looked down at the tarnished ring on her finger and felt the tears rise up in her eyes. She was seventeen years old and married to a dead sleaze. She wanted to run into some dark corner and hide away from everyone until she died.

"My advice," Juno said jolting Lydia away from her thoughts, "live your life. Do things as you would and try to get the most out of it. There will be a time when Beetlejuice comes out, it might be when you're twenty, but then again it might be when you're forty. Either way you can't change that fact, but you still have control on the rest of your life. Keep that and deal with the rest when it comes." Before anyone could say anything else Juno disappeared into a cloud of wispy smoke.

"Well you certainly got yourself into a fine mess," Delia said and wrinkled her nose in disgust at her stepdaughter.

Lydia blinked up at her, but she couldn't feel anything. She couldn't have cared less about her father, stepmother or the Maitlands right now. She looked down into the bright red lace of the wedding dress that was still on her. It itches, she thought at began to scratch lightly on it. As long as she didn't think about him maybe she could make it go away.

"I'm going to bed," she said and turned away from the room, away from Barbara, Adam as well as her father and Delia.

Lydia climbed up the stairs to her bedroom to get out of her wedding dress and go to sleep. Maybe I can just sleep all of it away, she thought and a flicker of a smile flashed across her face for a moment as she thought of mindless, dreamless sleep. An image of Beetlejuice crept inside her mind and consumed her thoughts and she gripped her hair tearing out the veil that was clipped on top and tossed it down the stairs. She turned around to watch the light lace float down to the middle of the stairs.

When she reached her room she closed the door and looked around. Her entire life had changed in just a few minutes. She looked at herself in the mirror, her skin pale against the bright red of her dress and raven black of her hair. She didn't look like herself and she wasn't even sure if she knew who that was. He'd ruined her, he'd ruined everything about her and now she'd have to sit and wait to see if he would come back or leave her alone. She was going to live her entire life in fear that Beetlejuice might come back for her.

Lydia's face contorted with rage as she reached up and clawed the fabric away from her skin. She didn't stop until each scrap of that wedding dress was in shards and she stood naked in her room, her breath ragged and clipped. She looked down to her left ring finger and felt rage bubble inside of her again. She had to get the ring off, any piece of evidence that she reminded her of Beetlejuice had to be destroyed. She twisted the ring, but instead of slipping on, the ring became tighter against her skin.

The rage that she had felt turned into panic as she twisted and yanked the ring only to find that it wouldn't budge. Lydia felt the ring squeezing her finger as she continued to claw at it. She sank down to the ground, the light in her eyes defusing and watched as the blood rose to the surface where she had clawed around the ring.

What's the point of trying, she thought and bent her head down. She was stuck with the ring and stuck with a constant reminder of what he had done to her. Lydia wanted to cry, she wanted to scream, but nothing came. Instead she sat on the cold wooden surface and stared at her image in the mirror. Her eyes were wide and wild and her hair stood out and tangled. Her skin was pale, paler than usual and she watched as the scratch marks she caused slowly come to life. Red scratches against the alabaster of her skin where she clawed the bridal gown away from her body. She bent her head down and watched as the blood dripped slowly down her left ring finger and splash onto the floor between her legs.


	2. You didn't read the fine print

Beetlejuice tapped his long fingers against the worn and scratched surface of the coffee table that was covered in dusty magazines. How could this have happened? He should have been free as a bird since he married that little live girl, too bad he didn't get a chance to kiss the bride. He shook his head and scowled at the blue-skinned receptionist.

"What the fuck am I doing here?" he spat at her, "I should be doing whiskey shots in some bar in New York or Chicago, not in this mother fuckin' place again."

The receptionist glanced up from her paperwork with mild disinterest in the ghost. "I am not the one who got eaten, you did," she said and shuffled the papers that were in front of her, "now sit down and wait for your turn to see Juno."

"Bitch," Beetlejuice said and leaned back against the molded couch in the waiting room. God he hated this fucking place, almost as much as he hated Saturn. If there was anything he hated more than sandworms it was being bored and there wasn't a goddamn thing he could do in this place except sit and wait.

Beetlejuice read all of the magazines that were strewn about the waiting room until he had each word memorized. He tried to have conversations with the others who were waiting, but all they would do was sit and blink at him until he rolled his eyes and sat in silence.

This shouldn't be happening to me, he thought. I should be out; I am supposed to be free. I could kill that bitch all over again for sending me back here. Beetlejuice felt his energy bottling up on him and if he didn't let it out soon he was going to explode. He bounded out of his seat and began to pace the small area of the room, but it wasn't enough. I was almost out, I was almost free, he thought as he paced faster.

That bitch and that fuckin' family caused this, it's their fault. Rage poured inside him and filled him to capacity. It collected in his chest, arms and legs and made him pulse with raw energy. He laid down on the dirty floor and pushed upwards. It hurt like a son of a bitch, but it was something to do and he hated this nothingness. Exercising is better than just sitting on my ass, he thought and pushed up again.

Soon a sweat began to collect and he paused just long enough to take off the maroon tuxedo jacket and ruffled shirt that he was wearing before he went back to work. He couldn't give a fuck who saw or what they thought.

"Number nine trillion, nine hundred ninety eight billion, three hundred eighty three million, seven hundred fifty thousand, Beetlejuice," the receptionist called out.

"It's about fuckin' time," he muttered and got up from the floor. His skin was shiny with sweat and he had no clue how long he'd been down on the floor doing sit ups and push ups, but it was better than just sitting. At least he did something. He pushed past the receptionist to head down the hallway to see Juno. God I hate that fuckin' bitch, but this time I've got her, he thought and smiled to himself. This time she can't do a goddamn thing to stop me, no matter how hard she tries. He walked past all the ghosts who had to work their entire afterlives behind their desks. What a waste of an afterlife, he thought and sneered as he walked past them.

"Gotta smoke on ya? God knows how long it's been since I've had one," he said and gave Juno a smug smile when he walked in to sit down across from her.

"Five years to be exact," Juno said and handed him a pack of cigarettes.

"Five years? Five fuckin' years you've kept me locked up in that goddamned place?" he snarled at her ready to leap out of his chair and strangle that open neck of hers.

"You're a stupid, stupid man," Juno said and shook her head.

"Watch it Juno, you're lucky that I can't do anything to you, but talk to me like that again and we'll see how far I'll go. You know I ain't one for followin' the rules," he said in a low voice.

Juno smiled at him and let his anger wash over her like it was a summer breeze. She'd been around Beetlejuice enough to know his temper and he didn't intimidate her in the least bit. She watched him as he took out a cigarette and lit it up. He closed his eyes as he took a deep drag and blew the smoke out of his nose.

"I really can't believe you managed to pull it off Beetlejuice," she said and shook her head.

"You're damn right I did now just do what you gotta do and let me get the fuck outta here," Beetlejuice said and blew smoke in her face.

"Hold on a minute, it's not that easy," she said and let a small smile form when she watched him raise an eyebrow.

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"You never read the fine print did you?"

"What fine print?"

"The preacher said till death do you part didn't he? Well Beetlejuice, since you are dead that means that lovely little wife you married. You are to reside with Miss Lydia Deetz Juice in her residence until such time as the contract would expire and the contract will expire on her deathbed. When that time comes you are thereby released from your duties as husband and will be able to go about your way," Juno stated.

"And if I just skip it and decide to go about my way anyway?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"If you decide to break this agreement, then you forfeit all privileges and are to be deported back here where you belong," Juno said.

No, this couldn't be happening, he thought wildly. Everything began to sink in as he thought of what he had to do and his cigarette hung down from his lips. I'll never be free, never, he thought and felt his stomach sinking and bile rise into his throat.

Juno slid an address across her desk to him and Beetlejuice glanced at it. New York, at least she was in one of his favorite cities. He watched as Juno scribbled her signature on a piece of paper and slid it into a folder.

"Have fun Beetlejuice and I don't expect to see you again," she said and gave a small wave to dismiss him.

Beetlejuice got up and walked out of the office to head toward New York. He never thought in a thousand years that he would have to be with that girl again. Damn, it just kept getting worse and worse. First he lost five years of his life waiting in that damned room and now he'd actually have to be with his...wife? God he never thought he'd say that word. A wife, and not only a wife, but one that he could give a shit less about. She'd been a convenience and now it turned to be a burden.

Beetlejuice narrowed his eyes and smiled. He wondered if little miss Deetz knew about what was in store for her. If he had to be with this little girl then he would. Even if he had to be with her, he was still out of this shit hole and that was better than nothing. Besides, nobody said he had to be faithful, just reside with her and anything was better than where he had been. It's about time to see my wife, he thought and sneered. He wondered briefly what had changed in Miss Lydia Deetz; she had been a slight dark girl with pale skin back then. Wonder if she changed, he thought and shrugged. Not that he cared that much, but he was interested to see her face when he showed back up on her doorstep. It'll be priceless, he thought and started to perk up.

"Ready or not Mrs. Juice, here I come," he said and cackled before he poofed to go see his bride.


	3. So we meet again

Lydia waited in line at the grocery store to pay for her food. Her feet hurt, her back hurt and her head hurt, but she was a long way away from being finished with the day. Her boss had assigned her to copy all of her hand written notes onto a DVD for his presentation the next day so that meant taking her work home, again.  
"Is this everything for you ma'am?" the cashier asked as she bagged the groceries.  
Lydia smiled, but it was faint and didn't reach her eyes. Twenty two years old and she was being called ma'am. Do I really look that old? She sighed and nodded her head. The cashier gave Lydia her bags of groceries and she gave a small thank you in return.  
I feel so old, she thought as she walked along the dirty streets to head back to her apartment. I was just hoping that I looked better than that, but if I'm already getting called ma'am then I guess not. Lydia frowned and heard thunder roll across the sky. It would rain on me, another great day as usual; she thought as she quickened her pace and hoped that she would make it to her apartment building before she was drenched. Two seconds later the sky opened up and she was poured on. She turned her head to look at the sky and blinked. Why me? What did I do to deserve this? Thunder rolled in response and she sighed as she walked the rest of the way back to her apartment.  
Lydia fumbled with her keys while she tried to not let the groceries drop to the floor.

"Honey, I'm home," a gruff voice called from behind her.

Lydia froze, the key still in the door and slowly turned around; she could hear her pulse thump in her ear.

"Oh God no, please let this be a hallucination. Just too much work, that's all," she said when she gazed at Beetlejuice. This can't be happening, it just can't. Please God, please make it go away, she thought.

Beetlejuice smiled and leaned back against the wall and pulled out a cigarette. "I'm afraid that it can Babes, I'm back and I'm better than ever," he said and cackled.

Lydia dropped her groceries and ran a hand through her soaking hair. Her breath came in short gasps and she looked around wildly.

Beetlejuice raised an eyebrow, not exactly the welcoming he was hoping for, but then again, he wasn't quite sure what she would do when he showed up. She was hyperventilating.

"Whoa Babes, you need to chill out," he said.

"Chill out? Chill out?" she said, her voice rising as she snapped back.

"Yeah, chill out," he said.

"I have not seen you for five years and was hoping and praying to God that I would never see your ugly mug again," she said. Something inside of her snapped and she became angrier and angrier as she looked at the ghost. "Now you are here and you are bothering me for God knows what reason, because apparently, you haven't destroyed my life enough yet. Well I hate to break it to you Beetlejuice, but my life can't get more ruined than what it is now, so I suggest that you do a one eighty and get the fuck out of my life for good," Lydia said her breath coming in short heaves now.

Beetlejuice stared at the young woman with a new fascination. This could be interesting, he thought as he leaned against the frame of the door.

"Sorry Babes, but there's a little problem with that," he said and smiled.

Lydia paused and raised an eyebrow. What was he up to? "What are you talking about?"

Beetlejuice smiled at her and flicked ashes on the floor. "Can we, uh, talk about this in, uh, private?" he asked.

Lydia glared at him, but she had to admit that he was right; they shouldn't be in the middle of the hallway.

"Fine, let's go inside, but don't touch anything," she snapped. Lydia bent over and picked up the groceries that had fallen out of the soaking grocery bags.

Beetlejuice watched her as he leaned against the wall and pulled out another cigarette. She has a nice can, he thought as she bent over. Pretty decent face too, looks tired though.

"Don't help or anything," Lydia spat as she turned her head over her shoulder.

"Hey, it ain't like ya asked me or anythin'," he said. I should help, she could probably use it, but fuck, she didn't ask. It ain't my problem.

Lydia rolled her eyes and snorted. Figures, she thought and finished picking up the rest of the cans that fell on the floor. She opened up the door and narrowed her eyes when he strolled into her apartment before she did.

"Asshole," she muttered.

"What was that?" he asked and turned around.

Lydia stared at him and dropped the groceries on the floor. "I called you an asshole," she said and stuck her chin in the air.

"That's what I thought you said," he said and smiled.

"Hi Miss Lydia, everything's all set. I'll be back next Friday," a young teenage girl said as she bounced into the room.

Beetlejuice raised an eyebrow and looked the young girl up and down. Cute face, decent body, he thought.

"Thank you Julie," Lydia said and dismissed the girl. Julie gave her a toothy grin and gave a long look at Beetlejuice who smiled and winked in return.

"I'll be right back," Lydia said and walked down the hall, "don't touch anything."

Beetlejuice moved his fist up and down in front of him, like he was jerking off when she left the room and rolled his eyes. Don't touch anything, like she had anything worth touching, he thought and snorted. He looked around the apartment, small, but enough room for one, well two people now; he thought and smirked at that.

I don't give a shit what she thinks about me, it ain't my fault that her life turned out shitty. Join the fuckin' club, he thought as he looked around. It had more color than he would have guessed for her, but then again he couldn't care less about it.

Beetlejuice flopped down on her sofa and propped his muddy boots on the dark stained coffee table. I'll touch whatever the fuck I want, he thought and put his arms behind his head to wait for his wife to come back. He smiled at that, his wife, not that he was planning on being "faithful" or anything like that, but still it was kind of a nice idea.

"Now what are you doing here?" Lydia asked, "And get your feet off of my table."

Beetlejuice turned around and dropped his jaw to the floor. Lydia was holding a little infant girl, couldn't have been more than a year old.

"What the fuck is that?" he asked in astonishment. The little girl turned to look at him and he saw she had a small tuft of jet black hair and large moss green eyes. She giggled and turned back to her mother.

Lydia instantly softened when her daughter turned to nuzzle against her and forgot that Beetlejuice was standing there.

"This is my daughter," she murmured, more to herself than to Beetlejuice, "Kiera."

"Kiera huh? Where'd ya come up with that name?" he asked and snorted.

The softness in Lydia's eyes faded away and she narrowed them towards him. Bastard, she thought and gently sat down with Kiera in her lap. "What is it that you want Beetlejuice?"

Beetlejuice ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. "Apparently there are a few loose ends that need to be tied up before I can go on my merry way," he started.

Lydia raised an eyebrow and bounced Kiera on her lap. "Such as?"

"Well, since we're married an' all,"

"Forced,"

"Is not."

"So is,"

"What the fuck ever. You agreed to it so it ain't forced," Beetlejuice spat.

Lydia glared at him, but he held his ground. She sighed and bent her head down. He's right, damnit and now she was stuck with him, just because she wanted to help the Maitlands.

"Fine, what is it that needs to be tied up?" she asked.

"Well apparently I gotta stay with you until you kick the bucket," he said and smiled.

"What?" Lydia leaned forward and blinked.

"You heard me," he said and pulled out another cigarette and lit it.

"What exactly does that mean?" Lydia asked, "And don't smoke around my baby," she said and pulled the cigarette out of his mouth, smashed it and waved the smoke away.

"What the fuck is you're problem? This doesn't affect you that much. I mean think about it, you'll be able to go about whatever you do, you'll just have an extra guest."

"Which means more food, more electricity, more water, more everything and I don't even know you. How could you possibly think that I would be okay with you being here with my daughter?"

"Well what the fuck do you want me to do? It's not like we have much of a choice here," he snapped back.

Lydia glared at him, but his face didn't change. I know he's right, but what about me? I don't know what I'm going to do. I'm already strapped for cash, stressed out beyond belief and now this, this thing is going to be around my child? I don't think so, she thought and looked at him. He looks serious though, sounds like he's telling the truth, but how could I trust him?

"Look Lyds, I ain't askin' for this because I wanna be here. God knows that I'd rather be out on my own than in this shit of a place, but it is what it is and I can't change that. Not unless you wanna croak early," he said and smirked.

"Thanks a lot for that," she sneered, "are you sure there's nothing we can do?"

"Yeah I'm sure, look I won't be in your hair. I'll be gone during the night and sleep during the day when you're at work. You won't even know that I'm there," he said.

"I don't think so Beetlejuice, you've gotta earn your keep. I wasn't lying, I can't afford to keep you around here while you sit on your lazy ass and do nothing."

"What? What exactly do you want me to do? Even when I was fuckin' alive I didn't do jack shit," he said.

"Not my problem, just find something," she said.

"Like what Mrs. Juice?" he asked.

Lydia snapped her head and narrowed her eyes. "Don't call me that," she hissed.

"Why not? That's your name isn't it?" he said, "So, got any food in this place?"

Lydia tightened her jaw, but nodded. She picked Kiera up and hauled her on her hip, but Kiera started to struggle and cry.

"What's the matter Kier?" Lydia asked as she started to fuss. Kiera held her hands out to Beetlejuice who raised an eyebrow at the baby and looked at Lydia. "I think she wants you to hold her," Lydia said and felt a stabbing pain in her chest. My child wants to be held by this, this thing?

Beetlejuice glanced from daughter to mother and back again. This little thing wanted to be held by him? Something had to be wrong with her; he was never good around children. She was still holding her arms out and smiling at him. He raised his eyebrow and looked up at Lydia.

"Just take her, I don't have time for this right now," Lydia hissed and handed Kiera over to Beetlejuice, whose eyes became as large as saucers.

"What the fuck am I supposed to do?" he asked looking at her.

"Just hold her for a second while I get some food on. I haven't eaten all day and Kiera needs to eat," Lydia said over her shoulder as she walked into the kitchen.

Beetlejuice looked back down at Kiera who giggled and reached her arms up to touch his face. He held her back and lifted her up so he could look into her eyes. Soft mossy green, happy eyes, he thought. Why the fuck does she want to be held by me?

"What are you smiling at?" he asked Kiera. The little girl just started to giggle and raised her hands up and placed them on his whiskered chin and felt around. He felt her butter soft hands move around his face and felt a pain of panic. What if his whiskers hurt her hands, she could get a burn on her fingers, he thought and froze. What am I doing? Why should I care if this brat gets hurt or not? It would be her fault if she did, I didn't ask her to put her hands on me, he thought and looked around.

"Come get this kid," he called.

"Can't you hold her for two seconds?" Lydia called from the kitchen. God he could be infuriating. Kiera wanted to be held by him and he freaked out for one minute because she was gone. I am getting him some food and he can't do one thing for me?

Beetlejuice looked back down at Kiera who was smiling and giggling as she rubbed her hands over his chin and cheeks. I gotta get outta here, I gotta breath, he thought and put Kiera down on the floor. Beetlejuice turned around and headed straight out of the door, slamming it shut.


	4. Night out on the town

I know it's been a really long time since I've updated, but I was buzzed on caffine and I really wanted to work on some Beetlejuice fanfic. Loves to all.

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Beetlejuice walked out of the apartment building and into the cool night air. There was just something about Lydia and her daughter that got underneath his skin. No normal baby would respond to him in that way. Giggling and laughing? Reaching up to touch his face? No, there was something wrong about it and it made his stomach flip. He needed to find a bar and some slut that he could fuck to get the thought of a family out of his mind.

He'd been single for centuries and just because he was married now didn't mean that he was going to start acting like the perfect family man. No way in hell was he going to roll over and let Lydia put him on a choke chain. Bath and get a job? Who the fuck did she think she was? It's not like she was doing so great for herself. Getting knocked up so young and not able to keep a man around. She probably was a horrible fuck, he was willing to bet that she was a stone in bed.

An image crawled up in his mind of Lydia naked and underneath him, silent as a stone and rigid as a board as he moved on top of her. It was enough to make him shiver with disgust at the mere thought of it. He would have put even money that she got pregnant when the fucker popped her cherry.

Beetlejuice found himself walking into a dingy bar a block down from Lydia's apartment. He walked into the door and was absorbed in smoke and artificial lighting that was blinking. A couple of old fucks were throwing darts in a corner and a couple bikers were shooting pool in the middle of the dirty floor. He felt at home in the dark and dusty place as he slid onto a barstool, polished bare from use.

"What can I get ya pal?" the bartender asked.

"Whiskey straight up," Beetlejuice said. He could be absorbed in a place like this and no one would question the way he looked. It didn't matter that he was covered with dirt and mold from head to foot. It didn't matter that his suit could probably walk away on it's own and it didn't matter that he was dead.

The bartender poured the alcohol into a small shot glass and moved away. Beetlejuice picked up the glass and poured the whiskey down his throat without a second thought. The liquid burned down his throat and settled like fire in his stomach and he loved every minute of it. It had been five years since he'd enjoyed the burn of whiskey in his gut. Five fucking years he'd been stuck in that goddamned waiting room doing nothing but exercising just to get rid of all the energy that he had stored up.

"Need some company sugar?" a husky voice asked from behind him.

Beetlejuice turned to see a forty something barfly hovering over his shoulder. She had the looks of being pretty once, but whoring, cigarettes and booze had ravaged her face and her skin looked like leather. Beetlejuice smiled to himself and took out a cigarette. Rode hard and put away wet was the only way he could think of describing this chick.

"Sure honey," he said and offered her a cigarette. Might as well get a fuck while I'm out, not like I'm going to get anything when I get back to that cold fish of a wife.

The woman smiled and bit the butt of the cigarette in between her yellowed teeth. She waited for Beetlejuice to light the cigarette before she took a deep drag and burned half the cigarette.

"Gotta love a woman who knows how to suck on a cigarette," he said and smiled as he called the bartender over for another whiskey.

"That's not the only thing I can suck," she said causing Beetlejuice to cackle.

Wouldn't mind a good blow job now that I'm out, he thought and nodded for the bartender to pour a shot for the chick.

"Is that so?" he asked and she just smiled and stuck her large pink tongue out to lick her red painted lips.

"Yeah, that's so. Care to see for yourself?" she asked.

Beetlejuice's eyes dilated as lust surged through him. He needed to blow his seed somewhere, might as well be in barren lands.

"Sure sugar, you live close?" he asked.

The woman just nodded as she held out her weathered hand for him to take. Beetlejuice grabbed her hand and let her lead him out of the bar after he threw a couple of bills at the bartender.

Beetlejuice threw the barfly against the door of her apartment and crushed his mouth on hers. He tasted ash, booze and a hint of vomit. He closed his eyes and forced himself to push past the taste in her mouth. He focused on the fact that he was going to get laid for the first time since that whorehouse popped up in that model. He could have kissed Juno for that little trick up her sleeve.

The barfly smiled at him and pushed him away so she could open the door to her apartment. Beetlejuice was blasted with the smell of nicotine, vomit and rotgut booze. There were molding cardboard boxes in the corner of the yellowed walls and a pile of clothes that were piled up on the floor.

"Care to have a little drink?" the woman asked and picked up a plastic half gallon bottle of cheap vodka.

"Uh, sure sugar," Beetlejuice said and swallowed the lump in his throat. He thought of the way that Lydia's apartment was clean and tidy. All books lined up on a bookshelf and the floor was clean and shining.

The woman took a swig from the bottle and handed it over to him, wiping the vodka dribbling down her chin with the back of her hand.

Beetlejuice gulped again and took a swig of the cheap vodka to dull his senses. He had barely taken the bottle away from his lips when she locked her lips with his again and tore at his tie and shirt. She tore the buttons from his shirt and began to lick and kiss down his chest to his stomach.

"Oh, you're so built," she said against his now flat stomach.

Beetlejuice just groaned as she reached for the fly on his pants. An image of Lydia shot up in his mind so vividly he almost threw the woman off of his pants. She looked so sad and helpless when he'd seen her in the hallway of her apartment building, but the dark circles and tired eyes couldn't hide the fact that she had grown into a stunningly beautiful woman.

He looked down at the woman who was unzipping his fly. She had dry platinum hair that was dirty at the roots and what he hoped was dirt encrusted around her artificial nails painted with bright pink toucans on each nail.

What am I doing here? He wanted to push the woman away and go down to a whorehouse. He opened his mouth to say something, but the slut began to suck on his cock and his mind fogged over.

Beetlejuice closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind and enjoy the feeling of a woman's mouth on his dick. It had been a long time since he enjoyed a hot mouth of a woman sucking on him. He felt her hot tongue licking underneath his head and sighed to himself as he laid his head back.

An image of Kiera laughing and reaching out to him shot up in his mind so vividly that he snapped his eyes open and tore himself away from the woman's mouth.

"What's wrong sugar?" she asked wiping her mouth and smiling at him.

Beetlejuice looked at the whore who was on her knees in front of him and didn't bother to hid the disgust that he felt for her.

"I gotta go," he said and forced his hard cock back inside his pants. He'd rather blue-ball himself than spend one more minute with the slut who was sucking on his cock.

"What the fuck asshole? I thought you were gonna fuck me?" she screamed getting up off her knees.

"You thought wrong honey," Beetlejuice said and slammed the door behind him. He walked down into the dirty streets and kicked random cans out of his way with his black boots. He frowned to himself and pulled out another cigarette. What the fuck was wrong with him? Normally he could just push past anything. A cunt was a cunt no matter who's it was. Why did an image of Lydia and Kiera bother him so much that he pushed the barfly away? It pissed him off and he bit down on the butt of his cigarette so hard he snapped it and the cigarette fell onto the ground. He stared at it for a few seconds before crushing the lighted edge and ground it into the cracked pavement.

Better head home, he thought and shook his head. He'd been there for a total of fifteen minutes and he was already calling it home? No, better head to Lydia's apartment and crash. There, that sounded better. He started to walk in the direction of the brownstone and felt the weariness begin to seep in. He needed to sleep, more than sleep. He needed to collapse on the soft couch in Lydia's apartment and not wake up for a week. It had been a long day and he was ready for it to be over.


	5. Good Morning Honey

Beetlejuice shuffled back through the dirty streets to Lydia's apartment. He didn't know what was going to happen when he walked in that door. Probably get fucking yelled at by that bitch of a wife, he thought and scowled. Great, just what I want to come home to every image of a daily life with Lydia popped up in his mind and he shivered. Coming home every night with a crying brat and a nagging wife. I didn't sign up for this shit. I don't want anything to do with this shit, but I've got it. I didn't just get a wife, I got a family now. Fucking shit.

Beetlejuice looked up and saw a light still on in the window of Lydia's apartment. What's she still doing up? It's past three in the morning? Beetlejuice caught himself frowning and shook himself. What the fuck is wrong with me? Why should I give a shit if she wants to destroy herself by staying up all night?

He pulled out a cigarette and light it, taking a deep drag and blowing the smoke out of his nose. He sat down on the steps of the brownstone apartment building and looked down at his dirty boots. Things could be worse; he thought and flicked ash on the ground. At least I have a place to stay at. Food in the fridge and a couch to sleep on. That's more than I've had for a few centuries. Beetlejuice smirked at that thought and crushed his cigarette on the pavement in front of him.

Beetlejuice got up from the steps and walked inside of the building to crash for a few hours. He took a deep breath and prepared himself for the nagging he was going to get when he walked through the door.

He stood in the doorway a good minute before he moved inside. Lydia had fallen asleep at her laptop, a mug of coffee in front of her and the light still on. Looks like I weaseled out of that one, he thought and snorted lightly.

Beetlejuice walked over to Lydia and saw that she was snoring lightly in her sleep. She's tired, he thought and shook his head. Her hair had fallen in her face and had black circles underneath her eyes. He glanced at the computer screen and saw the tab blinking behind ggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg. He raised an eyebrow and saw that her hand was still resting on the keyboard. He picked up her hand and placed it in her lap and looked back at the computer.

Everything looked like it had been finished, but how the fuck would he know? He shook his head and deleted the g's that she had hit in her sleep. He reached down and lifted her small frame into his arms. His eyes grew wide as she curled into him and he could smell the remnants of her perfume on her chest and neck. It's nice; he thought and walked down the hallway with Lydia asleep in his arms.

Beetlejuice set her down on her bed and began to unzip her pants. His eyes dilated as he saw a pair of black lace underwear and sleek pale legs. Who knew that slip of a girl would have such a knockout body? He felt himself growing hard seeing her lower half exposed. He never did get a chance to blow off some steam that had been building for so long.

Beetlejuice knew that he would be a bastard if he took advantage of his sleeping wife, but she was his wife after all wasn't she? Wasn't that one of her wifely duties? To satisfy her husband? Beetlejuice gulped and shoved her legs underneath the sheets and pulled the blankets up to her chin.

Beetlejuice watched as Lydia turned and opened her eyes to look at him. He knew that she wasn't really seeing him, she was too exhausted to know what was going on, but he smirked anyway.

"I put out some blankets and a pillow," she slurred and rolled back over to fall into a heavy sleep.

Beetlejuice's mouth opened slightly to say something, but he closed it again. She took out blankets and a pillow for me? I would have thought that she would have had the police waiting for me when I came back, not welcoming me into her apartment. He shook his head in confusion and quietly walked out of the bedroom.

There they were, a pile of soft blankets and two pillows were sitting right next to the couch just waiting for him. He shook his head again and shrugged. If she wants to play happy hostess, then I'll let her. He sat down on the couch and tugged off his boots. Might as well get comfortable, he thought and yanked off the rest of his clothes. Beetlejuice pulled the blankets over his naked body and settled into the couch. Living with Lydia was going to be interesting, he thought and smiled. I wonder if she's gonna show that she likes what she sees or if she's gonna be a prude? Beetlejuice was still smiling as he closed his eyes and fell into a dreamless sleep.

Lydia was awake before she opened her eyes. She knew that she was in her bed and she knew that it was early in the morning, but beyond that she didn't know what had happened. She couldn't even remember how she had gotten into her bed last night. Must have been so tired that I just dragged myself to bed without realizing it, she thought.

She opened her weary eyes and blinked several times before they came into focus. Rolling her head over, she realized that it was six o'clock in the morning and she needed to get Kiera up and ready to go over to the baby sitters before she headed off to work. She groaned to herself and threw off the covers.

Lydia roamed through her closet to pick out a pair of pinstriped trousers and a deep plum dress shirt for work. She was reaching for her hairbrush when she heard a snore from the other room and froze. Panic began to rise in her and she heard her heart beat pulse in her ear. Who the fuck is in my house, she thought and was about to reach for the phone when she realized it was Beetlejuice and her stomach sank down.

She tiptoed into the living room to find Beetlejuice asleep on her couch, his legs sticking out of the blankets that she had given him and one arm flung over his eyes.

"Oh God," she groaned and caused him to wake up.

"Good morning Honey," he said with a graveled voice and scratched his chest.

"Morning and don't call me Honey. Lydia will do just fine," she said and stared at his chest. Something was different, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. There was just something about his chest that made her think that there was a difference.

"What no coffee in the morning?" he asked causing her to stop her thoughts.

"I suppose if you want some I could make a pot of it. I have to drink at least three cups myself to keep me going," she said and gritted her teeth. Why did I just tell him that? It's none of his business to know how much coffee I drink, or if I drink any at all. Why the fuck should he care?

"Yeah, boil me up some would ya Babes?" he asked and stretched. A lazy smile forming on his face.

Lydia frowned at him and turned to walk into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee and get breakfast for Kiera.

"By the way, you look really fuckin' cute when you're asleep," Beetlejuice called and heard a crash in the kitchen.

"How the fuck would you know what I look like when I sleep?" Lydia asked as she walked out of the kitchen, placing her hands on her hips and narrowing her eyes.

Beetlejuice just smirked at her and winked. "What about that coffee?" he asked and saw Lydia's normally pale face turn a dull pink.

"Get it your damn self, I've got shit to do," she spat and walked down the hallway.

Beetlejuice just shrugged and snapped his fingers making a mug of steaming black coffee appear before him.

"Ah, Columbian dark roast, my favorite," he said and took a hearty sip.

Lydia stormed into Kiera's room and huffed. The nerve of that man, ghost, or was he a man now? Lydia shook her head and looked at her sleeping daughter. She couldn't help but smile at her precious little girl.

"Come on baby girl wake up for Mommy," Lydia said as she stroked Kiera's soft hair until she opened up her soft green eyes and looked up at Lydia smiling and rubbing her eyes with her tiny hands.

Lydia lifted Kiera out of her crib and began to get her dressed up for the day. Stupid Beetlejuice, what the fuck did he mean that she looked cute when she slept? I thought he would have hooked up with some sleaze and spent the night over at a two bit hotel. Instead he was here, on my couch using her space that I worked so hard to get.

Lydia looked down to see that she had put Kiera's sweater on backwards and she looked up at the ceiling.

"Why me? Why did you place this asshole in my life? What did I do?" Lydia asked the world in general. She wasn't sure if she believed in God, not with her life, but it felt good to pretend that someone was listening anyway.

"Yo Babes, what's up for today?" Beetlejuice called down the hallway.

Lydia gritted her teeth and looked down at her daughter.

"Who exactly does he think he is?" Lydia asked her daughter. Kiera just looked at her mother and blinked her large eyes. Lydia smiled and ran her finger down her daughter's cheek causing her to giggle and move her head down. She picked up her daughter carried her into the living room.

Lydia froze when she saw Beetlejuice. He had pulled on his pants, but had left his shirt off and she saw the beer gut was gone and was replaced by strong muscles in his chest and stomach. A flutter of lust surged through her, something she was repulsed by, but she couldn't help. She saw that he was dirty and had mold stuck to his pale body, but his physic was that of a model. What the hell happened to him? He looks so, so good.

"Hey, did you hear me or what?" Beetlejuice asked and burped loudly as he took out a cigarette and lit it.

"I have to go to work and don't light that around my baby asshole," she said and yanked the cigarette out of his mouth and dropped it into his mug of coffee.

"Ya know, you shouldn't cuss 'round your kid, could get a bad mouth at an early age," he said and snapped himself another mug of coffee.

"Unfuckingbelievable," she said and rolled her eyes.

Beetlejuice couldn't help but laugh at her and shake his head at her. "So what am I gonna do while you're at work?" he asked.

"You could go and get a job while I'm at work," she said and slipped Kiera into her sweater.

"Yeah, or I could, ya know, not," Beetlejuice said.

Lydia clenched her teeth together and tightened her jaw. The nerve of this asshole, coming into my home and thinking he can just lounge around the house.

"So what did you do last night? I would have thought that you wouldn't have come home last night." Lydia frowned at herself. Why did she say home? This wasn't his home, it was hers and Kiera's.

"I went out to a bar and hooked up with some slut," Beetlejuice said and smiled when he saw Lydia's eyes widen a fraction.

"Why didn't you just stay over there for the night then," Lydia asked through her teeth.

"I wouldn't want my wife to think I wasn't going to come home," he said and winked.

"I'm not your wife," she said.

"Ya know that ring on your finger says ya are," he said looking down at the ring that he had placed on her finger all those years ago.

Lydia looked down at her finger and frowned. She hated that ring with a fire that burned inside of her. Ever since that fateful day she had tried to get the ring off of her hand, but it remained on her finger.

"Whatever," Lydia mumbled and hid her hand away from him. "You can't live here for free you know, you are going to have to get a job."

"Why's that?"

"Common sense Beetlejuice, I can't afford to pay for you. I can barely afford to pay for my daughter and myself," she said matter-of-factly.

"Well common sense would tell me that I can't exactly bag a job lookin' like this," Beetlejuice said.

"Good, then you'll take a shower and-"

"News to Lydia, getting me clean is a two man job and by that I mean it'll be a cold day in hell before I jump in a bath without a naked woman."

"What is it that you want from me?"

"Hey, all I'm sayin' is that you're not bad lookin' gotta nice rack and a decent ass. If you want me clean_, honey_, you gotta do it yourself. Oh, and I need some new clothes too, guess you're gonna have to get those too," Beetlejuice said. He knew that he could just snap his fingers and have everything he needed, but why not make Lydia suffer a little bit.

Lydia narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to tell him to fuck off, but the image of his flat stomach and hard chest made her freeze. A pulse of energy raced through her lower stomach and between her legs. Damnit, stop it Lydia, this is repulsive. It's Beetlejuice for God sakes and you're thinking about him naked?

"Fine, tonight you're getting a bath," she said.


	6. Bath Time

Lydia typed on her computer furiously at the office. God she despised that man, ghost, man, dammit he was confusing her. She growled out loud as she pushed her keyboard away from her and got up to pace the room. She caught a glimpse of his long, now hard stomach and his hard muscles in her mind's eye and felt her body giving way to it.

"Damn him," she said and sighed.

"What is the matter with you?" Dora asked raising her eyebrows as she looked at Lydia. Lydia looked at her friend and tried to give her a smile, but it fell as quickly as it had come.

"It's something that happened at home," she said trying to shrug it off.

"Oh God, it's not Kiera is it?" Dora asked starting to get up from her chair.

"No, no," she said feeling a stab of guilt over Dora's reaction. "Kiera is just fine, healthy as a horse and eats enough to prove it," she said with a hint of a smile on her face.

"Then what is it girl? You scared the bejesus out of me," Dora said clutching her mighty chest. Dora had been around long before Lydia had started this job and was the only person there for Lydia while she was pregnant and with that sleaze of a boyfriend. Why such a sweet girl like Lydia was with a scumbag like John she never knew, but then again, she did get Kiera out of it and that was the best prize in the entire world. Dora's eyes faded a bit at the memory of seeing Kiera for the first time in the hospital. She was such a precious little thing, her hair a soft swirl of black and a sweet smile on her face. If she recalled correctly Lydia's parents had only come up for a brief moment when their granddaughter was born. She didn't exactly know why, but something made her think that Lydia didn't have the strongest relationship with them. Poor little mite had to suffer through all that pregnancy alone and deal with that boyfriend of hers. "Dora? Dora have you heard a word that I've said?" Lydia asked snapping Dora's attention back over to Lydia.

"I'm sorry honey, but I haven't. I was just thinking about when you had that precious little girl in the hospital. She was such a cute baby," Dora said smiling.

Lydia's eyes softened a bit as she thought about how cute Kiera was in her little pink blanket.

"She could have won every cute baby contest in the world, still can," Lydia said pride swelling in her voice.

"Ms. Deetz," a deep voice called from inside the office.

Lydia bit her bottom lip and let out a little groan. She was swamped already, not to mention that she had Beetlejuice to deal with and she just knew he was going to pile on more work for her to do. It would be another sleepless night.

"Yes Mr. Jones," Lydia called walking into his office. The modern office gave way to huge windows that allowed a view of the whole of Manhattan and no matter how many times she came in she felt a sense of awe.

"Ms. Deetz," Mr. Jones started getting up from behind his desk and walking over to her. "I need all of the documentation on the Hudson case as well as picking up my dry cleaning, I'm sure you can manage that can't you?" he asked, his voice swelling with arrogance.

Lydia wanted to tell him off, tell him that she was prized for her art work and he should be so lucky to have such talent, but she couldn't. She needed her job more than anything and she hated that she had to give up her career as an artist to support herself and John and now Kiera. Of course, she never minded supporting Kiera, she was her light and joy, but that didn't mean that times were a bit trying at times too. She looked at him and gave him a smile.

"Of course Mr. Jones, I'd be happy to get you everything that you need," she said and started to walk out of the office.

"Don't forget to get extra copies and you should probably create a powerpoint presentation for me as well Ms. Deetz," he said reaching for his cell and dialing.

Lydia could only nod her head as she made her way out of the door and sighed. Just what she needed, more work and Beetlejuice on top of everything else. She felt like crying for no reason in particular, but didn't. She never cried and she wouldn't start now because of him. She looked at Doris and just shook her head as she made her way down the hallway to the elevators to go get Mr. Jones his dry cleaning.

Beetlejuice flicked through the television channels and watched as nothing after nothing came on. He was bored, he was beyond bored. He didn't think that anything could be more boring than this. He thought of the waiting room and sighed. There had been nothing to do in there either, with a shrug he clicked the television until something quasi interesting came on and threw himself down upon the floor. He started pushing himself up and felt the familiar feeling of shutting everything off. A clear vision of Lydia came into his mind; she was asleep over her computer looking so frail and young. He knew that he wanted to fuck her, hell, he knew that the second he'd seen her. She'd grown up to be a knock out, but that little girl certainly threw him for a loop. He'd never imagined that Lydia would up and get herself pregnant. He wondered if the fucker was still around. No, if he was around then Lydia would have certainly threatened him with it, no the fuck up was long gone.

"What are you doing?" Lydia asked from the door way.

Beetlejuice paused and stood up looking at her, sweat streaming down his forehead. She looked exhausted again, dark circles underneath her eyes and a bright eyed and giggling Kiera was on her hip.

"What?" he asked and flopped down on the couch.

"God it smells horrible in here, that's it you have got to get a bath right now," she said putting Kiera down on the floor. To Lydia's shock Kiera immediately made her way over to Beetlejuice. "Rotten little traitor," Lydia said shaking her head and smiling at her daughter.

Beetlejuice looked up at her in surprise and even more surprise when he bent down to pick her up in an automatic gesture. He glanced up at Lydia and gave her a helpless look.

Lydia threw her hands up in the air and shook her head. "You deal with her, right now I've got to get out of these work clothes and you need to get into a bath," she said staring hard at him. The entire apartment smelled like sweat, mold, dirt and anything else that was probably crawling underneath his skin. She shivered at the mere thought of it as she went into her bedroom.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa," he said holding Kiera out from him by underneath her arms as he followed her into her bedroom. "What's this about a bath?" he asked. Kiera giggled at him and reached for him, without thinking he pulled her close to his chest and held her there. Lydia noticed the change, but didn't say anything.

"Get out so I can change," she said willing enough to touch him enough to push him out of the room. He was still protesting when she shoved him out of the door and locked it. Thank God she had a lock on her door or else he would just bound right back in. She laid her back against the door and shook her head laughing a bit at Beetlejuice. His eyes widened as he held Kiera next to him. It warmed her heart and she hated that it warmed her heart. Her smile fell away as she reminded herself that he was there to intrude upon their lives and that she didn't want him there. He was so much of a hassle that she barely had any time to think and he'd only been there for a day, less than. She shrugged out of her work clothes and hung them on the chair next to her bed before she yanked on a pair of jeans that were so worn the knees where worn through and there were still oil paint stains on them. She yanked on a tank top and then made her way out into the living room.

Lydia had to pause and smile again when she walked in to see Beetlejuice laying on the floor and her baby girl crawling all over him. Of course now she'll have to give Kiera a nice bath too and get her all scrubbed up, but she wished she had a camera. He looked almost at peace with her crawling and giggling on him.

"Will you get this kid offa me?" he asked knowing full well that she'd been staring at him for at least a half a minute. Not that he minded her there of course. She always seemed to have a smile on her face and there was something that tugged at his long dead heart strings in seeing a baby.

Lydia frowned at him and picked up the can of air freshener and shot it straight at him, covering him in the scent of lavender and vanilla.

"HEY," he yelled out pulling Kiera off of him and standing up. "What the fuck was that for?" he asked narrowing his eyes at her. He was about to pound her into the ground until he saw the gleam of mischief in her eyes. Maybe there was more to Lydia than met the eye.

"You deserved it and you certainly stink enough to have it," she said sticking her chin out and holding herself proudly.

Beetlejuice rolled his eyes and stared her down. "You don't honestly think that I'll go that easily do you?" he asked advancing on her.

"What do you mean?" Lydia asked backing away from him.

"I mean ok, so you get me in the tub, then what? You expect me to go back into these?" he asked holding his black and white blazer up to her so she could see the dirt and filth encrusted on it. "It ain't like I got a lot of different clothes to dress into honey," he said with a smirk continuing to come at her. "Seems like a waste of time don't it."

Lydia continued to back up and away from him until her back hit the cool wall behind her. Dammit, she thought to herself and looked up at him. His clothes were dirty, that was the understatement of the year, but she turned her head to smile at him. A clear bright smile that seemed to touch him in a small way.

"I'll simply wash them for you," she said placing her hands upon his chest and giving him a gentle shove. She felt hard smooth muscle beneath her palm and jerked her hands away.

Beetlejuice hadn't expected that answer and frowned at her as he let her pass. He searched for an argument to get out of it, but nothing presented itself fast enough and before he knew it she had Kiera on her hip and was leading him into the bathroom. He watched as Lydia started the hot water and turned to look at him. Her eyes were masked and he frowned at that, he wanted to know what she was thinking.

Lydia was torn with herself. Part of her wanted to see Beetlejuice in all his glory, but that was a sick and twisted part of herself that she didn't want anyone to know about. She sighed and shook her head. Bouncing Kiera on her hip she roamed through her hygienic concoctions. Finding a pink bottle of Mr. Bubbles that she used with Kiera she dumped a large amount and watched as the foam bubbles came rising up to give him a nice curtain to hide himself when she came in.

"There that should do it," she said and turned to look at him.

"You don't expect me to take a bubble bath do you?" he asked looking at her in absolute disgust.

"It's either the Mr. Bubble or it's the rose and orchid bubble bath that I have," she said shrugging towards him. "I figured you didn't want to smell life a flower."

"Or more like one since you sprayed me down with that shit before," he said his mouth drawing down at her. To his immense surprise and pleasure she giggled, a high pitched musical giggle that made him want to smile at her.

"That was a little mean, but you deserved all of it," she said and started walking towards the door. "I'll be back when you're in the tub and you need to be scrubbed. You were right this is a two man job. I guess you'll just have to do more work than I will."

"Fat chance," he muttered and watched as she departed. He looked at himself in the mirror and sighed. Why was he doing this again? He hated getting into the bath and he hated even more being clean. He hated having a wife and a child, he looked at himself. He just said that he had a child, even if it was in his mind. He frowned at that. She was a cute kid and all but she wasn't his kid that was for damn sure.

He slowly took his clothes off and looked at his physique. He did look different that was for sure, but he wasn't sure if he liked the change or not. He wasn't as grotesque looking and that would hit him in his pocket book. Then again, he was out so maybe it was better if he wasn't so grotesque. He knew deep down that Lydia would win in him getting a job. For two reasons, one he was already bored out of his mind and he knew that he needed to do something or he was going to go crazy. The second, as much as he really didn't care about Lydia and that kid of hers, he didn't want them to starve. Something inside of him made him feel a little protective. He was disgusted with himself in feeling that, but it was there and who knows. Maybe he could do something that wouldn't kill him…again.

Lydia waited outside of the bathroom and sighed. Kiera was fussy, she wanted inside the bathroom with Beetlejuice, what was she to do? She shifted Kiera over to her other hip and started bouncing her up and down hoping that it would help, but to no avail. Kiera opened her mouth and let out a wail that caused even Lydia's ears to bleed a little bit.

"Kiera please baby, please be good for mommy," Lydia pleaded with her, but Kiera would have nothing to do with it. She pushed and shoved and reached for the door.

"Alright, come on in," Beetlejuice called out from behind the door.

Lydia breathed a sigh of relief knowing that Kiera was going to get what she wanted. When she opened the door she almost laughed out loud at the look that Beetlejuice was giving her. He was pouting it was that simple. His bottom lip was stuck out and he was encompassed in a sea of bubbles that reached nearly to his ears.

"I don't think it's funny," he said look at her face and knowing she was just holding in the laughter. "Do you think you have enough bubbles?"

"Well," she said setting Kiera down on the soft rug that was in front of the tub. "I had to make sure," she said and smiled so brightly that he wanted to both kiss her and curse her.

Kiera crawled her way and shakily came up on two feet in front of Beetlejuice. She was giggled, the tears gone now and she looked to be in bliss. Beetlejuice cocked his head at the little babe and was charmed. Damn Kiera for charming him, damn Lydia for having Kiera. He huffed and sank deeper into the water.

"This sucks," he said causing Lydia to laugh out.

Lydia tapped her long delicate finger against her stubborn chin and looked at him. She wasn't quite sure where to start, but she knew that she had to start somewhere. Glancing down at Kiera she knew that her baby would be alright for a few moments while she perused through the shampoos and soaps that she had. It was one thing that was her luxury item. She loved to collect different soaps and lotions and take care of her skin and body. She wouldn't allow herself any new clothes other than work and she wouldn't allow anything frivolous like jewelry.

She finally decided upon a heavy duty shampoo that she used when she went out swimming. She knew that the strong citrus smell wouldn't make him think of girls and it would also strip down his hair to where she might be able to tell the actual hair color. She also brought down a smooth and silky honey almond conditioner that would work to make his hair look like hair instead of wire and a bar of organic oatmeal spice. The oatmeal would start to peel off the layers of dirt that she prayed wasn't hundreds of years old and it was scented simply with cinnamon and clove so it wasn't too fruity or flowery. She supposed that after his initial bath she'd have to get him some actual soaps and cleansers that were designed for men. She smiled at that and sighed.

"What?" he asked as she pulled down the weapons of her choice.

"Nothing, just thinking to myself," she said and poured the citrus shampoo into her palm rubbing it around and feeling the granules that would start to strip away the dirt, oil and whatever else was growing on his scalp. Taking the water pitcher that she used for Kiera's baths she gently held her hand above his eyes and poured the warm water down so it would get his hair wet and began to massage his scalp.

Beetlejuice started to protest when he felt her soft hand on his face, about to say that she was acting like his mother but as soon as those long fingers came into his hair he moaned out and stretched back. He never knew that having someone's fingers in his hair would feel so good. He forgot all about her actually washing him and concentrated on her hands running through his hair and wished with all his might that she was naked and the kid was out of the room. He sighed and closed his eyes feeling Kiera play with his fingers.

Lydia felt the dirt and grime in his hair and felt like she needed to wash her hands. She was not looking forward to getting the rest of him clean. The shampoo had already dissipated in her hands and he felt no cleaner. She added more on top of his head and nearly shouted with relief when she saw it finally starting to foam up. Granted the foam was a dark gray, but she didn't care, he was getting clean and she started to hum a Metallica song softly as she rubbed his scalp.

Beetlejuice opened on eye and watched as Kiera laughed and played with his fingertips. He smiled at her and waggled his fingers in front of her causing her to shriek with delight over it and reach out for him.

"Careful, I don't want her hurt," she said keeping an eye on her daughter.

"What are you humming?" he asked watching Kiera reach for him.

"What? Oh it's a Metallica song," she said as she focused hard on his hair. She rinsed the first lather and added more shampoo. This was definitely going to take at least two if not three or maybe even four washings just to get it to normal.

"Metallica huh? I would have thought that a chick like you would be more into, I don't know, opera or some shit like that," he said and cackled to himself.

Lydia rolled her eyes and dumped a bucket of water on his head causing him to sputter as Kiera giggled and splashed the water in the bathtub. Lydia laughed as the soapy water ran over his eyes and face. She had one hand on his back and on her knees when he suddenly lurched forward causing her to lose her balance and she yelled out a bit as her entire upper body was dunked into the water soaking her tank top.

Beetlejuice looked over and started cackling as she was soaked. He leaned back to try and maybe sneak a feel of her wet body but she moved away from him and splashed him with water.

"Asshole," she muttered and splashed him again for good measure. She wasn't going to play Ms. Nice Girl anymore as she scrubbed his hair with vigor until it started foaming white and she was satisfied. She slathered his scalp with the cooling conditioner and reached for the loofah sponge and lathered it up with the oatmeal soap and tore at his skin.

"Ouch bitch, that fuckin hurts," he muttered when she scrapped the hard sponge against his back scrapping off the mold and dirt.

"I need fucking turpentine to get this shit off of you," she muttered and attached him again. She was sweaty within seconds, but she leaned back to take a look at her work and smiled. His back was clean, she knew it was and now all she had to do was worry about the rest of him.

"You don't get to complain when you're the one who wanted me clean in the first place," he muttered closing his eyes again.

"I can complain if I want to," Lydia said frowning at his back. She sighed and looked at her handy work. She couldn't believe it, he was clean, at least from the neck down his back and she ran her hand down his back feeling nothing but clean smooth skin. She knew that if he was alive she would have caused blood to come to the surface, but there was nothing but smooth pale bluish skin. She looked at that skin against her own and noticed that there was not much of a difference. She frowned at that and looked at her pale skin. She had always admired it, but knowing that she was just a few shades away from death was slightly startling to her.

"What's the hold up?" Beetlejuice asked.

His voice shook her out of her own thoughts and made her frown at his back. "You know you could be a little patient. This isn't exactly a small project," she said and huffed.

She felt him shrug his shoulders and she sighed. What had she gotten herself in to? She moved to stand in front of him, completely forgetting that her tank top was soaked through. Studying him she decided where she was going to go from here. His hair was slicked back with the conditioner and she hoped that it would make it manageable. It was a hope anyway. She looked down at his chest seeing the dirt crusted in his fine hair and sighed.

"How on earth did you even let yourself get this far?" she asked grabbing the loofah and rubbed it with more of the oatmeal soap.

"It's amazing what you do or don't do when you're dead," he said and smirked at her. "I smell like an oatmeal cookie," he said and huffed.

"Better than the roses that I was considering, although it would serve you right to smell like a woman," she said giving him a smirk.

Beetlejuice couldn't help but smirk back at her and then frowned at himself. He felt her hands starting to rub across his chest and felt a shiver of lust course through his body. He looked up at her and noticed that she didn't seem to change any. Kiera giggled catching his attention and he silently cursed the kid wishing that it was just him and Lyds and then maybe he'd be able to get somewhere. He sighed and sank deeper into the water catching a glimpse at her tits and noticed that the water had caused her nipples to harden which made him almost instantly stiff.

Lydia ran her hand over his chest feeling the hard muscle and felt a shiver run through to her lower stomach. She shook her head and tried to ignore the fact that he was turning her on. God how long had it been since she had sex? It must have been forever since she was considering him a candidate. It didn't seem possible to her to even contemplate having sex with this, this creature yet her body was coming alive at the mere thought of it. She yanked her hands away from his body as if she was just burned and looked at him.

Beetlejuice raised a dirty eyebrow at her and smiled. "Too much juice for ya babe?" he asked and cackled. Kiera joined him giggling wildly and splashing her small hands into the water.

"No, you're disgusting," she said and looked away from him.

"Yeah, yeah, sure, sure," he said and arched his back a bit to get her to start scrubbing again. He hated the fact that he was actually in a bath, but he loved the fact that she was touching him. He couldn't remember the last time someone actually touched him and it felt great to have a sexy woman's hands upon his skin. Dead or not, he wasn't stupid.

Lydia huffed at him and gave him a look that would kill anyone else. She shook her head and glanced down at Kiera. Her daughter looked utterly happy playing right around Beetlejuice. He had dropped his hand over the side of the tub so she could sit down and play with his fingers, dirty fingers and she frowned at that. She left him for a moment and went over to her counter reaching for a nail brush, nail clippers and a buffer. Why not get everything while she had the chance?

Beetlejuice narrowed his eyes at Lydia as she returned with another armful of weapons for him.

"What the fuck are you going to do now?" he asked frowning deeply at her.

"Oh shut up," she said and reached for his hand scrubbing the ends and underneath his fingers with the brush with a fervor that would shock most people. Beetlejuice groaned and pouted, but he didn't try to pull away from her.

Lydia looked back to admire her handiwork. His hands were strong and smooth despite their previous dirt crusting. He had long strong fingers and equally long nail beds that made him look almost like a musician. She hated to admit it, but he was looking better and better all the time. She looked up at his face and sighed.

"I suppose there's no other way around it then to just start scrubbing on that face of yours and get everything off of it, including that nasty mold," she said and wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Hey, that mold made me some good ass money in the past," he said frowning at her.

"Whatever, now it's time to get it off," she said and sighed. She was tired and he'd probably been in the bath for at least a half an hour. Her back ached, her knees hurt and she still hadn't had anything to eat.

Beetlejuice noticed her slump back and saw the weariness within her. He frowned deeper at her. He knew he was giving her a kick in the ribs for making her wash him up, but she shouldn't look this tired, not at her age. She was barely into her twenties and she was exhausted nearly every time he saw her.

"Why don't you get your kid and get her something to eat, I'm sure she's hungry. Besides, you gotta wash those clothes. I can finish up," he said giving her a smirk.

Lydia eyed him with suspicion. "How do I know that you're not just going to get out and that will be it?" she asked.

"Holy fuck woman, get the kid outta here, besides unless you wanna jerk me off while your down in that water I suggest you get to work on my clothes," he said.

Lydia's eyebrows knitted together in outrage and she pulled Kiera up next to her and stood up. "You better be clean from top to bottom when you get out," she said and turned on her heel walking out and slamming the door. She walked into the living room and slumped down on the couch Kiera still bubbly and playing with her hair.

"I have no idea how he charmed you so easily but I think I need to keep you away from him," Lydia said looking into Kiera's mossy green eyes. Kiera reached over and touched Lydia's mouth and gurgled. Lydia couldn't help but smile at her little girl and she wished with all of her might that she could have given her a better life; she deserved to have the best. With a sigh she got up from the couch and looked at the moldy clothes that she'd taken out of the bathroom. What was she going to do with them? Putting Kiera into her playpen she tossed the clothes into her small washer and dumped as much laundry soap as she could in there. Cranking it onto hot she prayed that it would do the trick and she went into the kitchen, her stomach growling letting her know that she needed to eat something. Looking into the refrigerator she sighed trying to find something appetizing. She had just gone to the grocery store and yet she couldn't find a single thing. With a sigh she decided to forgo the food for right now and feed Kiera. She must be starving.

Beetlejuice gritted his teeth. He hated the fact that he was sitting in a tub and the water was turning cold. He hated it even more that Lydia was in the next room and probably didn't give a shit that he was about to do the one thing he hated and it was just to get her off his back. He sighed and took the stupid loofah sponge that she had used and started scrubbing. The faster he got this over with the better.

Lydia was sitting on the couch, Kiera tucked in her arms breast feeding. She looked down at her child and smiled, smoothing out her hair. Beetlejuice had been in the tub for at least another fifteen minutes and if she estimated right she should be finished nursing Kiera before he was out.

Beetlejuice stepped out of the tub, he'd finally got all that fucking soap rinsed off and looked at himself in the mirror. He smirked at his reflection. Not bad, not bad at all, he thought to himself looking at the pale bluish skin hard from the work out that he'd done while he was in the waiting room. He rubbed his hand along his chest feeling the now soft hair and raised an eyebrow. Wasn't bad. Would take some time getting used to, but it wasn't bad at all. He grabbed the towel and slung it low on his hips. Opening the door he walked out into the living room and froze to see Lydia's breast out of her tank top and a hungry Kiera suckling her. He felt instantly hard. He watched as Lydia looked up and froze.


	7. Shopping

Lydia was absorbed in her daughter. There was something special about having her daughter right at her side. She loved her more than life itself and didn't care that Kiera's father had abandoned them and he was the scum of the earth. Kiera was bright, beautiful and precious. She saw something out of the corner of her eye and looked up.

Beetlejuice was standing in the middle of the living room, a towel slung low over his hips. His body was so different from what she had remembered. He was strong, tight and hard and she pulsed at the sight of him. She'd seen him before in the tub, but being clean made every line, every muscle defined and perfect. She wasn't aware of Kiera until she pulled a bit harder on her breast.

"Jesus Beej, what the fuck do you think you're doing?" she yelled trying desperately to cover herself with a blanket.

"What? You're the one sitting here with your tit hanging out," he said not bothering to hide his erection.

"Fuck Beej, I'm fucking breastfeeding, you can't get it through your thick," Lydia paused her rant to look down and gasped, "oh my God, are you hard?" she asked. She wanted to be disgusted, she truly did, but there was the rush of confidence that surged through her. She could make a man hard. She bit her lip hard to keep from smiling and focused her attention on the fact that it was Beetlejuice and not someone else.

"You've got your tits out and well I'm a guy," he said smirking.

"Get the fuck out of here Beej. God you are so disgusting," she said and jerked up keeping Kiera secured to her and started to run to the bedroom. She had completely forgotten that Beetlejuice could transport himself anywhere he wanted to until she was face to face with him again.

"Shit," she screamed. Kiera dislodged herself from Lydia's breast and was crying before either one of them could say a word. Lydia looked up at Beetlejuice and narrowed her eyes.

"Now look what you did you son of a bitch," she spat out and started to coo Kiera.

Beetlejuice rolled his eyes. His hard on was long gone and now he had a hysterical baby and a pissed off Lydia in front of him.

"I didn't do jack shit Lyds, you're the one who started screaming and scaring the shit outta your kid," he said.

Lydia opened her mouth and shut it again. His eyes were hard and she knew that they would be arguing all night if she wanted to. She was tired, so tired and it collapsed on her all at once.

"Whatever," she said and pushed past him. Lydia rocked Kiera back and forth slowing her crying down to a soft murmur and then eventually into a quiet sleep. She felt exhausted and it was still fairly early in the evening. She wondered if Beetlejuice was still out in the living room and wondered if he'd stay.

Beetlejuice propped his feet on the coffee table and snapped a smoke into his mouth. What the fuck was her problem anyway? She's the one who started shouting and made the kid cry. He thought that maybe he had a chance to get his rocks off right then, but no. She just looked at him with those worn out eyes and he was toast.

He had seen the desire in her eyes, yes he did. He knew that she was raking his body in and it felt great to see her drawn to him like that. He smiled to himself as he took a long hard drag on the cig. He was still in the towel and had no intention of getting dressed any time soon.

"Beej?" Lydia's voice drifted down the hallway.

"What?" he said and blew smoke out of his nose.

Lydia walked out into the living room and looked at him. He saw the weariness in her eyes and it grated him. He didn't want to notice shit like that. He didn't want to care about it.

"Look, I don't want to scream and shout all night long about stupid shit okay? You just have to get dressed," she said.

"Why should I do that?" he asked and rubbed out the rest of the coal from his cigarette.

"Because this is my apartment Beej and I can't have you like, like,"

"like sexy?" he asked and smirked.

Lydia looked at him and furrowed her brow. "No, not like sexy, like naked and just lounging around. You need to get a job and you need to get clothes," she said and gingerly sat down next to him.

Beetlejuice looked at her and saw that she was dead serious. He wondered if he could exploit her for a little bit more.

"What exactly do you want me to do for clothes? Huh? You think that I can get out there and get this miracle job and not have some great clothes then you gotta be shittin me," he said leaning back and putting his hands behind his head.

Lydia chewed on her bottom lip and looked down. He had a point and she hated to admit it.

"Fine, I'll spot you some cash to get some clothes, but I have to pick them out," she said.

"Why should I agree to that?"

"Because if you don't I'll-"

"You'll what Lyds? Toss me out? You can't do that Lyds and you know it," he said smiling.

Lydia pinched the skin on the bridge of her nose. He wore her out and she felt tears stinging her eyes.

"Fine, do what you want alright?" she said and got up to head back into her bedroom.

Beetlejuice felt a stab of guilt and hated himself for it. He grunted and hopped up from the couch to catch Lydia's arm.

"Don't get all moppy Lyds, that's no fun," he said joking his way out of the awkward situation. "If you really want to take me shopping then I guess I can't really stop you," he said and smirked.

Lydia looked up at him and sighed. "I just want you to pull your share. If you really have to be here then you've got to support yourself because I can't do it," she said.

"Yeah about that Lyds, what about this kid's father? Don't he do anything for ya? I mean, isn't there something called child support?" he asked.

Lydia looked at him with pure hate in her eyes. He took a step back at the severity of her face and raised an eyebrow.

"He's not in my life and he'll never be in hers," she spat out. She opened up her door and turned back to look at him. "Tomorrow morning you're getting work clothes and then you're going out to get a job," she said.

"Is that so?" he asked.

"Yes that's so Beetlejuice," she said and shut the door.

Lydia stared at Beetlejuice as he slept. She'd woken up hours before him with Kiera crying to be fed. He hadn't even budged. As much as she hated to admit it, he looked downright sexy with a bit of facial hair in the early morning. He snored a bit in his sleep, but not as loudly as she expected. She shrugged to herself and took a sip of her coffee before she leaned over and shook his shoulder.

"Time to get up," she said.

Beetlejuice heard her voice and grunted in response. What was it? Six fucking am in the damn morning? She expected him to get up.

"Beej I'm serious I've got to drop Kiera off at her babysitters then you and I are going shopping. I don't have a lot of time here so let's go," she said pushing him a bit harder this time.

"Don't have a lot of time for what? It's early in the fucking morning AND it's Saturday. What exactly do you have to do?" he asked finally opening his eyes.

"Look, it may not seem like much of a life to you, but it's my life and I need to take advantage of every minute of it. I don't get that much time with Kiera so the fact that I'm willing to bring her to her babysitters for a few hours to head out with you is a big deal. I want to get this done and over with so you can go out job hunting and I can have a few hours of one on one time with my baby," she said.

He blinked and blinked again before he responded. "Damn, I didn't need a fucking speech," he said and stood up. He yawned and stretched, scratching his belly before he noticed her wide eyed stare.

"What?" he asked.

Lydia couldn't help herself. She oggled his body, his very naked body. The blanket had dropped down when he stood and it revealed a strong stomach, tight legs and a very prominent morning hard on. Her mind screamed at her to look away and to be disgusted, but her body was on autopilot. She pulsed and thought about how long she'd been without a man in her bed. John might have been many lousy things, but he was good in bed. She missed the feeling of a man on top of her body and his was a very excellent one.

"Lyds," he said and shook her out of her daze. He was expecting a full on rant and rage, but she just told him to get dressed and headed out the door with a babbling baby on her hip dressed in a warm jacket.

Lydia breathed the cool air in and out and looked up at the trees that lined the busy streets. The leaves would be changing soon and the weather would turn sharp and clear. It was her favorite time of the year and she wondered briefly about which Halloween outfit to get Kiera. Perhaps a little spider or maybe a werewolf. She'd have to look for the little baby outfits that didn't scream princess.

"Alright, you ready to get this shit done with?" Beetlejuice asked in a yawn.

"Yeah let's go," Lydia said and started walking down the street. Beetlejuice followed her with his usual swagger and kept yawning. The sun hadn't even come out yet and he was up and shopping. He saw a coffee shop and stopped in his tracks.

"The least you can do is get me a cup of coffee for getting me up so early," he said smirking at her.

"I'm out getting you clothes, what do you think I'm made of money?" she asked.

"Come on you can afford a few bucks to get a couple javas," he said.

Lydia growled but acquiesced because she could actually use a cup as well. She shifted Kiera over to her other hip and walked inside the busy barista. Most days she didn't use a stroller, although Delia and her father had purchased one for her when she was pregnant with Kiera. She didn't see them much these days, she was so busy, but maybe during the winter she'd take some time off and head up to Connecticut back to the farmhouse for a visit. She missed Adam and Barbara the most and it felt like it had been ages since she'd seen them.

"Two drips," she called out and unfolded a small amount of bills and handed a five over to the little teenager who handed her back two large paper cups for them to fill on their own. Lydia handed one to Beej and browsed the selection finally deciding on a bold Columbian roast with a bit of cream and sugar. Nothing fancy.

Beetlejuice snickered as he got himself a strong Guatemalan blend straight black.

"What are you laughing at?" she asked taking a small sip of the hot coffee and heading back out to the street.

"You," he said.

"What did I do?" she asked raising an eyebrow and turning the corner to head to the babysitters apartment.

Beetlejuice followed her for a while not saying anything, but still smiling until she asked again.

"I just would have thought that you would have gotten yourself one of those fancy drinks with the chocolate sauce and the whipped cream," he said laughing again.

"Oh, well, I consider that a treat and that's one treat that I can do without. Plain coffee is just fine," she said and buzzed the button for the babysitter.

Beetlejuice waited outside while Lydia dropped Kiera off with promises of only being gone for a few hours while she did some shopping. It wasn't long before she was back out on the street with him again and heading towards the clothing district.

By an hour Beetlejuice was exhausted but it seemed like Lydia was just hitting her stride. She took him to men's clothing stores and pulled sweaters, dress shirts, ties and trousers toward him and pushed him into the dressing room.

"Shit Lyds, can I pick at least something out?" he asked after they hit the third store.

"Fine," she said and went over to look at some jewelry while he browsed.

He had a ton of work clothes now, but he was desperate for something that didn't need to be pressed and dry cleaned. Browsing through the tee shirts he stopped on some of the band shirts, basic black with icons and trademarks on them. He pulled out a simple AC/DC shirt and smirked. He pulled out a pair of simple faded straight legged jeans and headed for the dressing room.

Lydia held the heavy bags filled with clothes and huffed. He'd been a while and the bags were heavy.

"Hey Lyds, what do ya think?" he asked.

Lydia turned around and gasped. He was every epitome of a rock star. His body was molded with the faded jeans and shirt and he made her swallow her tongue. She cussed in her mind. What are you thinking Lydia Deetz he's the gross and disgusting ghost that tricked you into marrying him.

"Looks nice," she said and turned away trying to keep her face from turning red.

Beetlejuice smirked seeing her reaction and seeing herself try to control everything she said and did. He wished that she would lose that bit of restraint that held her so tightly wound. He wondered how she would be like in bed, not that he hadn't already thought about it a thousand times. That body was fantastic, even for a woman who gave birth. She was tight and strong and he wanted it. He knew on some depraved level she wanted it too, no matter how much she fought herself on it. He wondered how long it would take to crack her. He hoped it wasn't long, but he knew that she would crack.

"What's with that face?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"What? Oh nothing," he said and turned around to head back into the dressing room.

Lydia stared after him long after he'd disappeared behind the curtains. Why was he pulling this reaction from her. She was frustrated with herself in more ways than one. Was she really that desperate for a man's touch that she'd take him? She shook her head and resolved to try and keep things purely plutonic between them. She just wanted to know that if he was required to stay with her that he was at least contributing. She didn't have a clue about what he could do, but she was sure he was enough of a schmooze that he would be able to find a job in no time if he really wanted to.

Beetlejuice strolled out with some shirts and jeans in hand and dumped them into her arms. She glared at him and opened her mouth, but he took the other bags from her hands and she was forced to snap her mouth shut. He smirked knowing that he'd caught her off guard and strolled away.

Lydia rolled her eyes and after they paid for that piece they headed into Lydia's favorite store, the beauty supply store. She loved the different scents of shampoos, lotions and soaps. He definitely needed to smell like something else other than her shampoo. Beetlejuice rolled his eyes and stayed in the front of the store looking at the razors and clippers while she browsed up and down each aisle selecting some soaps for him.

"Hi," a young voice said making Beetlejuice turn his attention to the girl at the counter. She was young, maybe just twenty and perky. Her hair was colored in ice blonde and blue streaks and she was eating him up. He smiled at her and winked.

"Hey babe," he said glancing at Lydia who now was watching the little girl at the register.

"I haven't seen you before around here," she said leaning forward so her small perky tits came together.

"Nah, first time in here sweetheart, but you know the old lady wanted to get some shit," he said nudging his head towards Lydia who had the nastiest look he'd ever seen on her face.

"Oh? You're married?" she asked her lips coming into a full pout.

"Well, I wouldn't say married, married, but like we live together," he said giving her a wink.

"Oh?" the girl said perking up again.

Lydia was frozen as she watched the little girl blatantly flirt with Beetlejuice. She lost all thought and went straight to jealousy. Marching up to the counter with her hands filled with Men's shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream and cologne and tossed it on the counter in front of the girl. She laced her arm with Beej's and pressed herself against him.

"Soon as we're done here I think we should head home. I might want to treat you with something special," she said glaring at the girl.

Beetlejuice beamed as Lydia swiped her card and hauled him off out of the store. He didn't say a word and just let her do all of the talking.

"I can't believe that little tramp, flirting so outrageously and with you. Ugh, it makes me sick just to think about it," she said walking so fast he had to jog a bit to keep up with her.

"So why did you act like a fishwife then?" he asked looking down at her.

Lydia stopped cold in her tracks and looked up at him. Why did she act that way? She hadn't thought about it before, but now? God, she did act like a jealous housewife and it made her a bit sick to her stomach.

"I don't know," she said and felt the color drain out of her face, "just take me back home and you go out and find a damn job," she said.

Beetlejuice rolled his eyes and popped a cigarette into his mouth. "What exactly am I supposed to go looking for?" he asked.

"I don't know, I'm sure you can find something. You're a sleaze, go be a car salesman," she said. Lydia really had one thing on her mind and that was getting Kiera and going home. She wanted to at least attempt to relax and with Beetlejuice around her she doubted that was going to happen.


End file.
